Apparatus for regulating pressure of and distributing gas.



No. s27,s|a. Paiented :une 27,1899.

A. LEcoMT a Lassen. APPARATUS FOB BEEULTING PRESSURE 0F AND DISTBIBUTINP GAS.

(Application led Dec. 5, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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No. 627,618. Patentd lune 27, |899.

A. LECUMTE & l. LOESER. APPARATUS FOR REGULATING PRESSURE 0F AND DISTRIBUTING GAS.

(Application led Dec. 5, 189B.)

UNITED 4STATES PATENT (5)'FFTCE.,I

AUGUSTE LECOMTE AND ISIDORE LOESER, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

APPARATUS FOR REGULATING PRESSUREOFAND DISTRIBUTING GAS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 627,618, dated June 27., 1899. Application led December 5, 1898. Serial No. 698,292. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern."

Be it'known that we, AUGUSTE LECOMTE and ISIDORE LOESER, citizens of the Republic of France, :residing at Paris, France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Regulating the Pressure of and Distributing Gas, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an automatic gas distributer and regulator especially applicable to the compression appliances employedfor increasing the pressure of the gas and intended to insure an automatic regulation of the distribution of the gas under pressure and an operation independent of all supervision.

In certain applications of heat, such as in soldering blowpipes and incandescent burners, the gas should be at a higher pressurel than that at which it is generally distributed in the mains. For this purpose ventilators, pumps, water-injectors, dac., have been utilized; but all these appliances require the regulation, either by hand or in some other manner, of the speed ofthe compressing appara-- tus in such a manner that this speed may always be proportional to the volume of gas supplied. In addition to this, if Jthe compressing apparatus be stopped it is necessary to operate aby-pass in order that the gasmay continue to circulate in the main; but if the compressor stops for any reason and therebe no one present to attend to it the passage of the gas is interrupted, and in cases' in which the gas supplies lighting appliances the whole of the burners in the installation are extinguished. All these defects are obviated-.by means of the distributerand regulator which forms the subject of this invention, as it automatically regulates the distribution ofthe gas under pressure and requires no superintendence. It has the further advantageof being suitable for application to compressors of all kinds.

The accompanying drawings illustrate in principle and byway of example only the au` tomatic distributer and regulator in two of its applications. l

Figurel shows the apparatus in vertical section asapplied to a l'mercury-exhausterf. 5o

Figs. 2 and 3 are two horizontal sections through the distributer-regulator,taken upon the lines l 2 and 3 4 of Fig. l, respectively.

ing from the vertical pipe f. A cock f is arranged in the vertical pipe between the two pipes d and e in such a manner as to enable the gas to be caused to pass either through the apparatus or directly through the vertical plpe.

The vessel @comprises an internal chamber g, communicating, on the one hand, with the` inlet-compartment b and closed at its upper portion by a valve h, which is applied upon its seat by the'action of a spring t'. The tension of this spring is regulated in such a manner as' to admit of the opening of the valve h when the pressure withinV the chest a rises above the pressure at which it isdesired that the gas should issuefrom the apparatus. The interior of the vvessel a communicates with the outlet-compartment c by means of the aperture'j. t l

The stem of the valve h of the said regulator lpasses through the center'of dome or bell lo,

immersed in mercury or any other liquid which is contained in the annular space pro-` vided for this purpose within the vessel a. This, bell or diaphragm is fastened on the said rod by a nut in the usual manner, or by soldering, or in anyl other convenient way. The weight of the bell is regulated in sucha manner that it rises under a pressure slightly higher than the admissionpressure of the gas into the apparatus, but less than the pressure at which the gas leavesthe same. This bell serves to effect-the opening of the valve h. in case the pressure Within the vessel a falls below a certain limit. Communication of the internal chamber g with the interior of the vessel d maylikewise be established by means f The spring fi, as above described, and upon this spring the bell 7o exerts no action. The second valve h', on the contrary, is closed and applied upon its seat by the pressure of the gas existing within the vessel a and opens when this pressure falls under the combined action of the pressure of the gas coming from the main and acting upon its lower face and of the weight of the bell k, which raises it by means of an oscillating lever or of any other appropriate means. It will of course be understood that this dome or bell may be replaced by a flexible membrane, a bellows, or other equivalent device arranged in any suitable manner. The cover or lid of the apparatus is provided with an orifice Z in order to permit of displacement of the air during the displacement of the bell 7s.

The internal compartment g is provided,in addition, With an aperture m, from which the pipe conducting the .gas to the compressor leads. The gas under pressure, issuing from this latter, enters the compartment c of the apparatus through the aperture n. The colupressor may be of any suitable type and may be-for example, as shown in Figs. l and 4-a mercury-exhauster, constituted in the ordinary manner by a cylinder o,within which rotates, either in mercury or in some other suitable liquid, a tympanum or turbine Wheel p. This latter in rotating compresses the gas successivelyin each of its compartments, and the gas so compressed issues through the aperture q, which is so formed as to present a raised edge or flange in order to facilitate the liberation of the gas and to employ only the minimum of liquid possible for obviating any danger of the bubbles of gas passing beneath the dividing-partition a and entering the cylinder o.

The turbine wheel is mounted upon an axis with a stuffing-box, to which axis motion is imparted by a small motor of any suitable kind. Owing to the arrangement of the distributer-regulator, this axis is able to rotate always at the same speed, whatever may be the consumption of gas.

Fig. 5 shows the employment as a compressor of a water-injector. A cock s, arranged upon the water-pipe, permits of causing the water to enter the in jection-nozzle ,arranged opposite the extremity of the tube u, into which the column of water draws the gas. This tube u opens into the lower compartment fu. The gas accumulates at the upper portion of this latter and is conducted through the pipe w to the compartment c of the distributer-regulator. The compartment o is also provided with an overflow-pipe m.

This distributer-regulator operates in the following manner: Ve will assume that the ordinary pressure of the gas arriving by the vertical pipe is four centimeters and that the pressure should be sixteen centimeters upon leaving the distributer-regulator. The compressor should supply the excess of pressure-that is to say, a pressure of twelve een- -since the valve 7L is open.

timeters. Under these conditions the spring t' of the valve 7L (not shown in Fig. 5) is regulated in such a manner that this valve opens when the pressure within the vessel a exceeds sixteen centimeters. The weight of the bell k, on the other hand, is regulated so that this latter rises with a pressure of from seven to eight centimeters-that is to say, a pressure somewhat in excess of the ordinary pressure of the gas,which should not be capable of raising the bell, and less than the pressure of the spring of the valve 7L, so that the pressure transmitted to the interior of thc vessel a through the aperture j when the compressor is actingmaintains the bell 7.: applied against the lid of the vessel a and so that the valve h is free to move. Everything being thus arranged in the position of repose, the bell 7c and the valve h occupy the position represented in Fig. 5. Then the compressor is started, the gas enters the distributer regulator at the same time by means of the apertures n j and through the compartment b and the internal chamber g, The pressure then rises beneath the bell 7a and exceeds the pressure equivalent to its weight. The bell 7c then begins to rise; but at the same time that the bell rises the valve 7L closes under the influence of its spring, the pressure then increasing continuously. lVhen the bell reaches a certain point in its travel, the valve h is completely closed, the bell continuing to rise until it touches the lid of the vessel a, then having the valve 7L entirely free. So longas the pressure within the vessel a does not exceed sixteen centimeters all remains in this condition but if such pressure increases for any reason-for example, if some of the burners supplied are extinguished-the pressure increases beneath the bell 7s, and the valve h, acting as a regulator, falls under the influence of this excess of pressure. A portion of the gas thus returns to the compressor, and as this latter always produces the same volume whatever may be the consumption the pressure then falls Within the vessel tt and within the outlet-compartment c until the normal pressure is restablished. If the compressor stops, the pressure diminishing beneath the bell 7c, this latter descends and causes the valve 7L to open. The gas then passes directly from the chamber g to the interior of the vessel a, and of the compartment c. According to the position of the bell k the valve h fulfils different functions and performs in succession the olice of regulatingvalve and of distributing-valve.

The apparatus may operate with a liquid other than mercury. It is only necessary to furnish a sulicient hydraulic protection.

This distributer-regulator produces an extremely important and novel industrial effect, because it enables installations to be made, workin g with compressors actuated in any desired manner and without superintendence. In addition to this it is indispensable with water-injectors, because it enables these ap- IOO IIO

IIS

paratus to be caused to act with a very low gas-pressure-fteen to twenty centimeters, for example-without an excess of pressure in the injector being able to cause gas and water to issue at the same time from the over,- ilow-pipe. Now it is Well known that waterinjectors give a much greater yield at low pressure than at high pressure.

Generally speaking, this distributerregulater automatically produces the following operations: first, the automatic placing in circuit of the compressor when this latter is started and' cutting off of the gas at ordinary pressure comingfrom the main second,`mainl tenance of the constant pressure which the gas possesses upon leaving the compressor, Whatever may be the increase of speed of the motor, whatever the number of burners lighted may be, and even if all the burners are turned off, (in cases in which the gas under pressure is intended to supply incandescent gas-burners,) and, third, automatic cutting out of circuit of the compressor when this latter has stopped for any reason and at the same time restablishment of the direct passage of the gas from the main at its own pressure without restricting the section of the passage for the gas and Without taking anything from the ordinary pressure of the gas, the burners not being' extinguished during this operation.

It will of course be understood that this distributer-regulator may Vary in form and di lnensions and that its accessoryarrangements may be varied according to the various applications of which it is capable.

. bers, passages leading from one of said'chamvbers and communicating respectively With the inlet to the compressor and the fluid-supply pipe, a passage leading from the other chamber and communicating with the outlet-pipe from the compressor, a passage connecting the two chambers and a valve controlling the same, means for normally holding said valve closed but allowing the compressed fluid to open it when the pressure thereof in the outlet-pipe exceeds that in the supplyspipe by a certain predetermined'amount, a reciprocating bell or the like, exposed upon one side to the pressure of the fluid in the outlet-pipe, the other side of said bell being exposed to atmospheric pressure, and means connected with said bell whereby, when the pressure within the outlet-pipe becomes equal to or less than that in the supply-pipe, the said valve is caused to open, and when the pressure within the outlet-pipe exceeds that withinthe supply-pipe the valve is allowed to close, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we have affixed our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

AUGUSTE LECOMTE. ISIDORE LOESER.

Witnesses: l Y EDWARD P. MACLEAN, GEO. E. LIGHT. 

